Marian Berry Loftus passed away April 4, 2022, having just celebrated her 98th birthday with her family 10 days before.
Born and raised in St. Louis, she was the eldest of seven children. Her life took a turn when her mother died when Marian was a teenager and she became the “mother” of her younger siblings. She attended the Rosati-Kain High School in St. Louis, where she graduated top of her class.
Marian met her husband, David, in St. Louis, where he was attending the St. Louis University School of Dentistry. After David graduated, they married, spent a few years in Brooklyn while David finished service in the United States Navy, and then moved to Skaneateles where they spent their entire lives.
Marian’s greatest joy was raising her family of 10 children. The low point of her life was losing her daughter Elizabeth (Betsy) in a boating accident in 1966.
Despite a busy home life, she made several significant contributions to the Skaneateles community. Working with a few of her good friends, she helped start the first nursery school in Skaneateles, which still exists today. She was also a founding member of the Skaneateles Vincent House Guild. Her faith was very important to her and she was a life-long communicant at St. Mary’s of the Lake Roman Catholic Church in Skaneateles. As part of her religious duty, she served many terms as president of the Stella Maris Retreat Guild. For many years, she also made dinners for the men at Unity Acres in Orwell, N.Y., and worked annually as a captain of a team going door to door to collect money for the American Cancer Society.
Marian was predeceased by her husband, David; daughter, Elizabeth, and five of her siblings. She is survived by her children David Loftus Jr. (Jane), Pamela Pidhirny (John), Jo Ann Loftus, Mary Ann Loftus, Margaret Newland (Fergus), Jon Loftus, M.D. (Tayloe), Philip Loftus, Amy Kimm (Todd ), Mark Loftus (Linh) and sister, Pat Berry. She also has 14 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.
Services were held Saturday, April 9, at St. Mary of the Lake Church in Skaneateles at 10 a.m.
For much of her life, Marian asked her family to make contributions to the many charities she supported instead of giving her gifts. Please help continue this tradition and in lieu of flowers, make a donation to SAVES in Skaneateles, DoctorsWithout Borders (can be made online), or a charity of your choice.
